Johnsburg’s Josh Kaunas always keeps a shooter’s mentality.

Even when his 3-pointers weren’t falling early in the IHSA Class 2A Mendota Sectional semifinal against Aurora Christian on Wednesday, Kaunas continued to seek out perimeter shots.

His confidence was rewarded in the fourth quarter where the 6-foot-6 junior nailed a pair of triples to spark a seven-point run for the top-seeded Skyhawks.

“I had a shooter’s mentality and a short-term memory,” said Kaunas, who finished with a team-high 12 points. “If I keep shooting, then eventually they’ll go in. ... Our urgency ramped up in the second half.”

With Kaunas catching fire from range and Johnsburg fighting off the Eagles on the glass, the Skyhawks overcame a five-point halftime deficit to beat third-seeded Aurora Christian 51-47.

The Skyhawks (23-11) advance to face second-seeded Rockford Lutheran for the sectional title at 7 p.m. Friday. Johnsburg, which drained nine 3-pointers and outrebounded the Eagles 30-20, will go for its first sectional title since 2003.

“Josh shoots 40% from 3, and we told him at halftime that the water always finds its level,” Johnsburg coach Mike Toussaint said. “I thought our leadership was great. ... Every night, it’s a team effort. We have three or four guys who average double digits for us.”

All five Johnsburg starters scored at least six points and five Skyhawks grabbed at least four rebounds. Aurora Christian had a five-game winning streak ended with the loss.

“We had two keys coming into the game,” Aurora Christian coach Dan Beebe said. “One was to push them off the 3-point line and not allow them to make 3s since they’re an outstanding shooting team. I don’t think we did that as well as we typically do. It’s kind of a staple for us and we’re really good at it, but I don’t think we did that well.”

Fittingly, Johnsburg opened the game with a 3-pointer as Ashton Stern drilled one off an assist from Jayce Schmitt for the first made shot of the night. Stern converted three first half triples to finish with nine points and five rebounds, while Schmitt scored eight points while grabbing five rebounds and dishing out three assists in the win

“It was straight confidence,” Stern said. “We made it this far and I know I can shoot. There was no hesitation when I got the ball with a look that I liked and that’s what gets our confidence flowing.”

Behind 6-foot-3 guards Preston Morel and Joe DeCort, the Eagles flew nearly level with the Skyhawks before soaring ahead during the second quarter. Morel, who cashed in a pair of first quarter 3s, made four of them in the game and led all scorers with 19 points. With Morel guiding the way, Aurora Christian led 27-22 at halftime.

“I was just flowing and playing loose,” Morel said. “I’ve done this before and I did it last year, so I was just ready. In the first quarter, we just didn’t really have it, but we talked with our coach and we were more aggressive from there. We hustled and played with more effort.”

Needing an answer, Johnsburg turned its attention to the boards, clawing up several offensive rebounds that led to second-chance shots from range. A triple from 6-foot-7 forward Danny Loud, who made two and finished with six points and four rebounds off the bench, gave the Skyhawks a 35-34 lead late in the third quarter.

“Practice this week has been very physical and we’ve emphasized the rebounding factor,” Kaunas said. “I think our urgency ramped up in the second half. Our seniors, knowing that this could’ve been their last game, played their butts off. It’s huge, but we need to stay humble and have a good practice so we’re ready to go on Friday.”

Morel fired right back with a 3-point shot that put Aurora Christian up 39-37 near the start of the fourth quarter and forced a Johnsburg timeout. But the well soon ran dry for the Eagles, who were held to just three field goals in the final quarter, one of which came on a desperation layup during the game’s closing seconds.

“We came out in a 1-3-1 and I thought we could match up a little better in it,” Toussaint said. “We had just one day of it in practice, so we went back to our 2-3 and that’s our bread and butter. We had to be up on their shooters and I thought we did a great job of that.”

https://www.shawlocal.com/northwest-herald/2026/03/05/josh-kaunas-sparks-johnsburg-in-ihsa-class-2a-sectional-semifinal-win-over-aurora-christian/